Squaw Island Amateur Radio Club

Since October 7, 1953

Smoke Signal April 2019 www.siarc.us

Yessiree, spring is coming. We just don’t know when. It was 65 Saturday and 35 and snow showers today. What a country!!

Our next meeting will be Wednesday, April 10, 2019 at 7:30pm at the Safety Training Center, 2914 County Road 48, Canandaigua. The meeting will follow the SIARC Board of Directors meeting at 6:30pm. All are welcome to both. Our program this month will be by Dave, N2EZY, and will cover SDR (Software Defined Radio). I will be taking orders for Field Day shirts, etc at this meeting. Payment will be needed at pick up during the June meeting. Hope to see you all there!

Past Events

Congratulations to Pat, KD2PER, who upgraded to Extra and Doug, KD2LGE, who upgraded to General at the March VE testing session. Good Work!! In addition following licenses were issued: Meunier, Kevin W -- KD2RPU -- New General Hopper, William D -- KD2RPV -- New Technician

The February meeting program was by Don, N2VDE, and covered D-Star and several of the devices that allow you to use that digital system. It allows you to connect the local repeater to a reflector of many repeaters or to a specific repeater using either a radio or several types of electronic machines (do I sound ancient or what?). More information can be found at www.dstarusers.org or www.dstarinfo.com. Anyway, it was very informative and probably will lead to many questions. Good job, Don. As a reminder, the club sponsors/supports 3 D-Star repeaters. Ask if you have questions about them.

Upcoming Events

April 27 is the date of the Wild Water Derby in Shortsville. We have 8 members that have volunteered to help. Any other volunteers are welcome, too. We will have 3 at the Start and Finish Lines and the other two will be set up on the course to advise of issues. We will need to be ready at 11am and will be done by 2:30, so you should be able to get to the Drumlins Hamfest for a bit and be on post in time. We are going to try out the new UHF handhelds that RACES has acquired.

April 27 is also the date of the Drumlins Hamfest at the Palmyra VFW post on Route 31. It is always a good time and great to see your friends and share a cup of coffee or meal. SIARC will not have a table there this year, but Dave W2ACC and Dean W2WDS are planning on setting one up.

Additional Public Service events in the area over the next few months include: June 8, Tour De Cure Bike event for Diabetes, Webster June 14, Shortsville Fire Department Parade (see below) July 13 and 14, Musselman Triathlon, Geneva August 24, Roc the Ride MS bike event, Rochester September 8, Finger Lakes Triathlon, Canandaigua October 6, Wineglass Marathon, Bath October 30 and 31, Pumpkin Patrol, Thruway bridges

Our next VE Session will be held at 6:30pm, on May 8, 2019, and Russ N2IZV is always looking for Volunteer Examiners. For May, we will be at the Human Resources Building, 3019 County Complex Drive, Hopewell, because the Safety Training Center will be in use. This session will be before the regular SIARC meeting. Contact Russ at [email protected] if you can help.

These sessions have been very successful and are a great way to introduce prospective members to our club and RACES organization. They occur during odd months and Russ needs at least 3 other examiners (extra class preferable) to be present.

Upcoming Contests and Special Events this month include: QSO parties in Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, North Dakota, Georgia, Nebraska, Michigan, Ontario, Florida, Texas State Parks on the Air, ARRL Rookie Roundup, 222mHz Spring Sprint, and many others. See the April QST pages 87 and 99 and the WA7BNM website http://hornucopia.com/contestcal/ for more information. These events are a great way to build up your DXCC, WAS and other scores for stations worked. And they are fun!

Just as a reminder, our May 8 meeting and VE testing session will be in another location. The Safety Training Center will be used for a police training class, so we will be moving to the Human Resources Building, 3019 County Complex Drive, (Hopewell) Canandaigua. I will be out of town, so VP Steve, WB2VMR, will have the meeting and program. We will also be taking orders for Field Day shirts at that meeting with payment due at pick up in June.

Our Field Day event with Drumlins ARC will be held at the White Springs Fire Department ground on CR 6 in Geneva. Thanks to Tony, KD2HNI, for securing the location. I imagine that once we get to May, planning will ramp up. If you would like to help, contact Don, N2VDE at [email protected]. Remember that the Field Day weekend is June 22 and 23 and will be using the call sign W2S.

The Shortsville Fire Department has requested our assistance with their parade to be held on the evening of Friday, June 14. We will be looking for a minimum of 8 operators with handhelds to volunteer, starting about 5pm. See Tom or Todd W2ODD if you would like to help.

From Ev, W2EV The Rochester VHF Group continues observing and celebrating its' 70th anniversary by gearing up to activate for the upcoming June VHF Contest. We would *LOVE IT* if our sister clubs would activate, too!

While most folks will simply power-up and operate, all are invited to be part of the "core planning effort" by coming to the Kickoff Meeting!

TENTATIVELY... we will meet on Saturday, April 13 from 3:45 PM to 4:45 PM at the Gates Public Library (conveniently located off of the Interstate highway).

Afterward, interested folks can move to any number of nearby restaurants, if they'd like.

PENCIL THIS IN NOW. I will confirm as soon as I hear back from their Director.

Ev, W2EV

PS: The January awards program will extend to the June VHF Contest! Just like January, member-awards will be score-based without regard as to entry category. Spin-up your station to score well and shoot for either a "Master" or "Grand Master" award! It's a "go"! Room confirmed. Will you be able to attend? Please RSVP: https://forms.gle/H7Q1NHjHHdga8i6f7 so we can plan for space.

Ev, W2EV

RACES and ARES

The Geneva City Hall EOC station is making progress. We have a room in the attic (yes it will have heat and air conditioning, but not a window) that has a whole wall of shelves and lots of electrical outlets. Dave, W2ACC, disconnected the 147.090 repeater and the building and grounds folks moved the repeater up to our room. It is now back on the air and linked to the 442.200 on Gannett Hill. Dave, John and I have been working on the set up, now that we have most everything out of the previous room on the second floor. Watch for updates. Let John (station manager) know if you would like to assist in this project.

The Wayne County EOC is sponsoring a Skywarn Training Class on April 30, 7pm, in Lyons. Let me know if you are interested and I will send you the information.

I encourage all of you to check into our weekly RACES/ARES nets, which are on Sundays at 8pm (except around holidays) (you are invited to check into any other net also) and practice those skills that someday you may be called upon to use. They are held on the W2ONT 145.450- (pl 110.9) repeater. We are also looking for additional stations to practice being Net Control and Assistant Net Control. In the event we are called out, having some experience as Net Control will be very beneficial. If you have ANY questions, feel free to contact me at [email protected] or 585-924-0752. If you are not, and would like to become a member of RACES/ARES, please see or contact me.

Monitor the 145.450 repeater in times of severe weather or area wide power outages. And if you do not hear anyone, start up an informal net.

I will have the magnetic signs for ARES use during public service events (runs, walks, etc) at the April meeting. They are $10 each and payable with cash or checks made out to SIARC.

Odd and Ends

There will be a new 6 meter repeater on the air soon, from Naples. It will be on a tower site space provided by Dean, W2WDS, and the frequency will be 53.110- (pl 82.5). Notice will be made when it is on the air. There will also be a 440 repeater on the same site, 442.500+ (82.5) going up there soon. Thanks to Dave W2ACC and Dean for these upgrades.

ARRL is starting a new podcast geared to those new to amateur radio.

So Now What? ARRL is launching a new bi-weekly podcast geared to those who are just getting started on their Amateur Radio adventure. Whether you’re new to the hobby or looking to get back on the air after an absence, we know that you’ve got lots of questions.

So does podcast co-host Michelle Patnode, W3MVP, ARRL communications content producer. Fortunately, she’s got co-host Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, W1AW station manager and ARRL Lab member, to help her learn more about this hobby. Join Michelle and Joe as they explore the topics that every newcomer to amateur radio needs to know. Click here for the latest episode. You can subscribe to the podcast in Apple iTunes or on Stitcher (sign in or use as a guest). If you are using an RSS client, the feed URL is:feeds.blubrry.com/feeds/arrlnowwhat.xml Scroll down for the podcast episode archive. QUESTIONS? Do you have a question for Joe or Michelle? Click here ([email protected]) to e- mail your question, or use the form below, and we will try to answer it on a future podcast episode! Credits: • Co-hosts: Michelle Patnode, W3MVP, and Joe Carcia, NJ1Q • Announcer: Sabrina Jackson, KC1JMW, ARRL Radiosport administrative Manager • Audio Editor/Producer: Michelle Patnode, W3MVP • Executive Producer: David Isgur, N1RSN, ARRL Communications Manager • Theme Music: “Jungle Island” from PremiumBeat.com • Logo designed by: Sue Fagan, KB1OKW, graphic design supervisor at ARRL

Canada is holding a National Parks on the Air event this year, similar to the one the ARRL supported in 2016. It is a great way to become a Chaser and make a contact with an Activator at one of their parks units. See the Radio Amateurs of Canada website, wp.rac.ca ARRL website www.arrl.org or pages 68 and 69 in the March QST for details. Or if you are in Canada, see if you can become an Activator!

Below is the information on ordering SIARC shirts and hats. Hello all, Below is the information I spoke of for Club Shirts, etc. You would deal directly with the vendor in Victor. If several of you want to get together for the orders of 12 or more pieces, Shane will look at the pricing and see what he can do. I would be happy to pick up your orders and deliver them at a club meeting if that helps out.

73 Tom Sanders, KB2NCI Ontario County ARES/RACES www.siarc.us Ham Radio: Service, Science, Skill

All pricing is based on a quantity of 5 pieces or less.

Navy t-shirts with left chest and full back print = $30.00 each Navy t-shirts with a left chest print only = $25.00 each Navy Baseball hat with logo on front and name and call sign on back = $25.00 Navy polo with left chest logo and name and call sign on right chest = $$40.00

Please note the pricing above is for small - extra large clothing only. Add $3.00 for 2xl and large.

If you have any questions please let me know.

Best Regards,

Shane P. Maher

Office:585-924-5118 Apparel Printers Plus Web Page

Drumlins ARC has started a weekly weather/rag chew net on the WA2AAZ 146.745- (pl 71.9) repeater. It is held on Tuesdays at 7pm and is open to all. Check in and see what is happening.

As a reminder, the Smoke Signals and meeting minutes are posted as soon as possible on the SIARC website. This is an easy way to keep up with the group if you miss a meeting. Thanks to Steve, KD2OM, for keeping the website up to date.

For local repeaters, you can go to www.rochesterham.org and click on Useful Links to find a quick reference. You can also go to www.unyrepco.org and www.wnysorc.org for repeaters in western New York. Lots of information is available, and the councils are continually trying to keep it current. I recommend becoming a member of UNYREPCO as that covers our immediate area.

If you travel, look at www.repeaterbook.com for lots of repeater information. They have an app for your phone that shows repeaters within 50 miles of where you are. And for scanner listeners, go to www.radioreference.com for nationwide information.

Dave W2ACC has repeaters up in Waterloo that can offer good coverage to our east. They are on 145.130- (pl 110.9) and 442.225+ (pl 82,5). Give them a try. Dave’s 220mHz repeater (on the Stanley tower) is now up and waiting to be used. The frequency is 224.26 (-1.6mHz offset and pl of 110.9).

From Dave, W2ACC “There is a 220 net on Tuesday night 7:00 pm and three nets on Friday night. 7:00 pm is the Syracuse world net followed by Tech net and the a swap net My 220 is tied into all of them along with KA2NDW and KD2SL

My 900 MHZ repeater is up and running” 927.212 902.212 5 5 With an 82.5 tone

All are welcome 73 Dave W2ACC

Check out www.dstarusers.org and www.dstarinfo.com for lots of information on D-Star.

Dues are payable in September for the next year. They are $10 for an individual, $14 for a family and $100 for Life membership. Please see Stan WM3D to pay.

Please be sure to inform Stan WM3D or Tom KB2NCI if you change your preferred email address and phone number, or other changes in your contact information. Having up to date information helps if we need to reach you quickly (e.g. cancelling the Holiday party).

A reminder to renew your ARRL membership (you are a member aren’t you?) through the club. We get a commission on each new and renewal if the club sends it in. See Tom KB2NCI for details. I encourage you to support the ARRL and become or maintain membership. They may not be perfect, but they try hard to represent all of amateur radio.

What projects are you working on or involved in? We would love to hear about them, either at the meeting or in the Smoke Signal. Let me know.

Nets

145.450- (110.9) W2ONT Sundays 8pm Ontario County RACES/ARES training net 146.685- (71.9) WA2EMO Sundays 8:35pm Wayne County RACES net 146.745- (71.9) WA2AAZ Tuesdays, 7pm Drumlins ARC Weather Net 146.610- (110.9) N2MPE Thursdays (except 4th) 9pm Monroe County RACES net 3993.5kHz LSB Sundays at 9am New York State RACES net

Club/RACES Repeaters

K2BWK 146.820- (110.9) Canandaigua VA Hospital K2BWK D-Star 147.375+ Honeoye K2BWK D-Star 443.500+ Honeoye W2ONT 145.450- (110.9) Gannett Hill W2ONT 442.200+ (110.9) Gannett Hill—linked to 147.090 W2ONT 147.090+ (110.9) Geneva City Hall—linked to 442.200 KD2HVC D-Star 444.300+ Stanley KD2HYJ D-Star 444.500 (no offset) Victor hot spot—very local coverage for now

President’s Thoughts

One of the nice things about March, is the increase in sunshine and you know what that does? It helps the Maple trees to produce the sap that becomes my favorite topping for pancakes—MAPLE SYRUP! So there is at least one good thing about March. The other is that is getting closer to spring and our wonderful summer. It is a great time to start planning and preparing for the upcoming events we can enjoy outside. I have listed them above and the one that is the most fun is Field Day, which will be held June 22 and 23 at the White Springs Fire Department on County Road 6 (Pre-Emption Road) in Geneva. N2VDE, KD2HNI and KC2TNJ will be working hard to pull this event together for us and they will need many hands to bring it off. We will have room for you to bring your own portable HF set up and see what you can do. More information as we get closer.

Have Fun and Talk Up Ham Radio and I hope to catch you on the radio!

73, Tom Sanders KB2NCI [email protected] 585-924-0752 Ham Radio: Service, Science, Skill

The Amateur's Code Originally written by Paul M. Segal, W9EEA (1928) The Radio Amateur is: CONSIDERATE Never knowingly operating in such a way as to lessen the pleasure of others. LOYAL Offering loyalty, encouragement and support to other amateurs, local clubs and the American Radio Relay League, through which Amateur Radio in the United States is represented nationally and internationally. PROGRESSIVE With knowledge abreast of science, a well built and efficient station and operation beyond reproach.

FRIENDLY With slow and patient operation when requested, friendly advice and counsel to the beginner, kindly assistance, cooperation and consideration for the interests of others. These are the hallmarks of the amateur spirit. BALANCED Radio is an avocation, never interfering with duties owed to family, job, school or community. PATRIOTIC With station and skill always ready for service to country and community.